Tuesday, April 28, 2009

What could be bad?

Starting pitcher:
M.C. O'Connor

The Giants beat their hated rivals with a little bit of Chavez Latrine dink-ball and a 1-2-3 see-you-later Brian Wilson 9th, and also got a visit from The King Himself, who not only energized the fans in the park but had some fun in the KNBR booth as well.

Bonds talked about hitting, of course, and reiterated a point he's made many times before. Barry said that if a hitter "did his job" he should not worry about the results. The job, naturally, is to "hit the ball on the screws." If a fielder "just happened to be standing there" that's the nature of the game. Go back to the dugout and be happy with the execution--hitting the ball hard. Don't let the "negative result mess with all the positive you just created." You have to figure The Greatest Hitter of All Time knows what he's talking about. So much of sport is random chance--the best athletes, especially those in team sports, know that they can only control a small zone of the entire event. Focus on that zone of influence, maximize your chance to do well, and let the chips fall where they may.

I was happy to see a relaxed Bonds, loved the fact that we won the game with him in the stands, and found myself glued to radio when he was bantering with Jon Miller. At one point, Barry talked over the action, then hastily described the play. Miller joked about it, and offered to let Bonds continue the play-calling, to which Barry responded, trying his best to drop an octave, "well you know I don't have as low a voice as you, Jon." The King said all the right things when the mic was in front of him, praising the fans, the club ("these kids have a good thing going"), the organization, talking up the rivalry with LA, deftly side-stepping any contentious points about his forced retirement, and joked about missing the game but "not the pain."

2 comments:

Tuesday's game was probably the best win this year. Come from behind defeat of the first place doggers. You are right, what could be better?Sorry I missed hearing Barry. I must admit that I'm still dealing with having my personal favorite player ripped from his throne in disgrace and then scorned like a plague-riddled vermin. It may be a few more years before I'll be able to form intelligent opinions about Mr. Bonds.